Convergent
by emmz233
Summary: Alternative ending to Allegiant, please read and review :)
1. Chapter 1

**Convergent**

Chapter 1

Tris

I stare across the room, completely transfixed at the sight of my mother with me again. I don't feel my bullet wounds, or the remnants of the death serum still clogging my veins, all I see is her. She is as I last saw her – in Abnegation clothes, her small, knowing smile playing around her lips, and I can see bullet holes in her shirt, yet there is no blood. I try to step towards her, but am unable to move; I feel the arms of death tighten around my chest. My mother is no longer calm; her lips are moving too fast, she looks upset and angry. I look around wildly, trying to see the source of her anxiety. Black dots begin to creep into the edge of my vision; my mother's face starts to blur and fade, replaced by the darkness. I close my eyes as I am consumed by the shadows. I picture everyone I will see so soon: my father and mother together again, Will, Al, Lynn, Uriah. I can almost see their figures coming forward from the gloom to greet me. But then I see all those who I am leaving behind: Matt, Zeke, Susan, Caleb, Christina, Tobias… My throat tightens and tears prick my closing eyes. _Tobias, I'm so sorry_, I think, but then I am falling, weightless at last…


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Tris

My mind teeters on the edge of consciousness; on one side the numb, painless black, on the other, aching, spiking, burning pain. Surely death shouldn't be so painful? Soft voices, barely audible, reach me as if from a long distance. I try to catch the words, but they slowly die away, and I am enveloped once again in the darkness.

I see Will collapsing as my bullets hit him, my mother embracing her death to save me, my father struck down by Dauntless guards, Al's pale body dragged from the Chasm, Lynn's blood staining my hands, Uriah's motionless body on a hospital bed. My eyes fly open; I am drenched in a cold sweat. I sit up, too fast, and my body aches in response. My head spins dizzily, and I flop onto my back. I am lying on a small, worn mattress in an unfamiliar room. Am I in heaven? Whatever I am right now, I definitely don't feel dead. Neither Abnegation's religious teachings, nor Dauntless blind faith have spoken of anything like this after death. I have always imagined the afterlife as a great meeting of all my loved ones who I had lost, final forgiveness and reconciliation. I suddenly become aware of movement in the doorway, and I curl up, closing my eyes and taking deep, even breaths. I can make out two voices entering my room; a woman who sounds familiar yet not quite right, and a boy whose voice I instantly recognise. A million emotions flood through me, freezing me where I lie. I feel like I'm trapped in a nightmare, back in my fear landscape; my heart pounds and I struggle to control my quick, shallow breaths.

I hear Will's familiar, heavy footsteps approach my bedside, and I tense, waiting for him to speak, he must know I'm not asleep.

Something cold brushes against my forehead, and I resist the urge to swipe it away, before I realise it is just a wet flannel, cooling my feverish forehead.

"Kate, she still hasn't woken up," Will says, anxiously, addressing the familiar-voiced woman. "She is going to recover, isn't she?" I risk a glance through my eyelashes, and I am certain that I'm dead.

My mother is leaning against a chest of drawers, silhouetted by the light from the open door, giving Will a reassuring look. My heart gives a jolt to see her again, alive and happy. But is she alive? Surely I'm dead? Maybe she's here with Will to lead me…on, wherever that may be. A sudden shout from outside the open door brings me back from my pondering. My mother looks anxiously between me and the door.

"Should I –," she begins, but Will cuts her off.

"No, I'll sort it out. Just stay with Tris, Kate." His voice softens on the last words, then he strides out of the room, pulling a gun from his waistband that I hadn't noticed earlier. I wonder what could be going on outside, or where 'outside' even is. Then I realise something; Will called my mother 'Kate', not Natalie. My confusion deepens, and I chance a glance up at my mother to settle my thoughts. She is smiling in her familiar, knowing way, yet as I stare up at her, something is nagging at the back of my mind, a tiny difference that I can't quite put my finger on. Her eyes are still the deep green that were echoed in Caleb's face, but did not get a place in my plain features. A strand of hair falls over her eyes, and she brushes it back, but not before I notice it's not the blond colour that I inherited, but a darker, golden brown. My mother would never have dyed her hair, so how could it have changed colour? My eyes once again find her small smile, and I realise the change, so obvious now it's been spotted. My mother's dimples have gone, and I suddenly see a stranger's face before me, and impersonation of my mother. I can't feign sleep any longer, and I must know who this woman is.

I roll over and stretch out my arms, blinking against the light as though I have just emerged from unconsciousness. I notice my not-mother step back a little into the shadows; her features are now veiled in the gloom. My eyes find hers, and I give a false start, as though I thought I was alone.

"Who…who are you?" I manage to stammer, my voice hoarse and sore.

"My name is Katherine Wright," she says, giving me a searching look, as if trying to detect a spark of recognition. My mind is blank for a few seconds, until it comes to me; Natalie Wright was my mother's real last name.

"You knew my mother?" I ask.

"Yes, I did." She scratches the back of her neck, just as I do when I'm uncomfortable and I'm suddenly reminded of Christina's Candor intuition during initiation of knowing when I was lying. "Actually, Tris, I'm her sister…and, I suppose, your aunt."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Tobias

I wake up with her name on my lips, as I do every day, as I know I will until the day I die. I quickly get out of bed and cross the hall to my bathroom, trying to block out my thoughts with the monotonous morning routine. As usual, it doesn't work.

When I finish my shower I return to my room, and some small part of me hopes that she will be sitting on my bed waiting for me, as she was the morning after she was attacked during initiation. My skin crawls to think of what Peter did to her, and I have a sudden urge to hit something. But I remind myself that hurting Peter wouldn't do any good - he wouldn't remember it anyway; he wouldn't remember her at all. Sometimes I wonder if that would just be easier, forgetting everything, starting a new life with no pain from old memories. But how could I betray her like that, as though the time I spent with her was meaningless, just a set of memories to throw away when I felt like it. Taking the memory serum wouldn't be brave, it would be the coward's way out, and Tris never knew me as a coward.

Still, the temptation is still there, hovering over me, waiting for a moment of weakness. I told Christina that I had thrown the serum away, but it's still in my drawer, an escape route from my current anguish.

"Four!" Christina yells from downstairs. "What the hell's taking so long?" I sigh deeply, but shuffle out of my room and down the stairs. Often, I think that having Christina share an apartment with me was a mistake, but I do need someone to keep me going when I get depressed, which happens a lot more than I'd like.

"Morning," I say gloomily when I enter the kitchen.

"Well, aren't you full of the joys of spring?" says Christina sarcastically, taking a steaming can out of the microwave. "Eggs?" She offers me the can after taking a large spoonful for herself.

"Since when have you liked scrambled eggs?" I ask, taking the can and grabbing another spoon from the drawer.

"Since your darling mother's regime rationed all the nice food," she replies, making a face as she takes another bite. "What I wouldn't give for a piece of Dauntless cake."

"I can see why you didn't choose Abnegation," I say, passing the last of the eggs back to her to finish. "Then you would appreciate this breakfast as much as I do."

"Once a Stiff, always a Stiff," Christina jokes, squeezing my fingers as I hand the can to her. "I almost forgot, there's a letter for you." She points to a white envelope sitting on the table. One of the good things Evelyn and Joanna have done in the newly reformed government was bringing back the post service.

I tear open the envelope and open the letter enclosed inside. Christina puts her head on my shoulder so she can read it as well. It is written in the neat, cramped style of the Erudite, and the ink splotches dotted around the page give a sense of great haste.

_Tobias, _(it read)

_I know you never wanted to see or hear from me again – and believe me, I wouldn't write if it wasn't important – but something big has happened that I think you should know about. Come to the Scientific Developments Centre at 7.00pm tomorrow, lab 14B and you can see it for yourself._

_Yours,_

_Caleb_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Christina

I watch Four's fingers tense around the piece of paper as he stares down at the words as if trying to etch them into his memory. He doesn't speak, and I don't want to either, so the silence stretches on, an endless cloud that envelopes us. Finally, Four moves; carefully loosening his fingers and exhaling deeply.

"What are you going to do?" I ask quietly, putting my hand on his shoulder.

"I don't know," he says, and his voice is soft and vulnerable, far from his normal masculine tone. This is the side of him that only Tris ever got to see; the abandoned son, Tobias rather than Four, the Dauntless instructor. I gently push his shoulder until he turns to face me.

"Look," I shift uncomfortably; I've never been much of a therapist, there's too much Candor in me for that. "I know you can't bear to see him, how much it hurts to see _her_ in him, but this could be important. Do you really think Caleb would dare write to you if it wasn't?" Four bows his head, not meeting my eyes.

"I just can't face seeing him again," his voice comes out muffled, "Seeing all the little things that remind me of _her_… and knowing that he was the one she died to save! She didn't think about hurting me or you, only saving him!" Four's voice cracks on the last word, and his shoulder's shake. Without thinking, I wrap my arms around him, trying to give him some comfort in his pain. Slowly, he returns the embrace, his strong hold a flicker of the Dauntless Four. I relax into him, pressing my forehead to his shoulder and feeling the warmth through his thin shirt. Suddenly I feel Four tense around me and a sob escapes from his lips. I pull back to look at him but he turns his face away, trying to hide his pain from me.

"What's wrong?" I ask, resting my hand on his cheek. "Four?"

"I...I can't talk to you about this," he mutters, placing his hand over mine.

"Why not?" I reply angrily. "You can't just start crying and then refuse to explain yourself to me!" I pull my hand away and step back. "If you're going to act like a baby, I'm not going to put up with it!" I turn to storm out, but Four's hand closes around mine, holding me still.

"Do you think I like acting like this?" he almost shouts. "Do you think I like the fact that I can't bear to touch you without thinking about _her_!" His voice cracks on the last word but he keeps on shouting at me. "How can I even look at you that way, betraying everything I was to her, what she was to me…" He breaks off, and his face is so sad, that all my anger is gone.

I don't know what to say or do, I can't think of anything that will make it better. So instead I just get up quietly and walk out of the room, out of the house, away from the broken man that needs me, and my feelings that I know I must hide. I walk away down the street that used to be part of the Abnegation sector; my first cowardly act since I chose to become Dauntless.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Will

I walk slowly back down the street towards Kate's house, trying not to think about what just happened. Instead, I think about Tris; Tris who I haven't seen since the day she shot me when I was a mindless Dauntless puppet, controlled by Jeanine's serum. Did she feel bad after shooting me? Or did it mean nothing because I couldn't think for myself? How was she going to react when she saw me? Tris, and the rest of Chicago, think I'm dead, along with countless others that have been rescued and brought here to the fringe, undetected by the faction leaders. We've all had to be adjusted to 'life outside the fence', which basically has meant Kate and the other helpers teaching us everything the Bureau and faction leaders deemed unnecessary for us to know. Some people decided to move away from Chicago, but most stayed in the fringe like me, living on the charity of people like Kate. By this time, I've arrived outside our apartment, just off one of the main streets running through the fringe. As I open the door, I can hear quiet voices coming from the room we put Tris in. So, she's awake. I brace myself and walk through the door.

As soon as I enter the room, the voices stop and I feel Tris's eyes boring into mine. I look up at her, and the first thing that pops into my head is how different Tris looks – I hadn't noticed when she was asleep. Her hair is shorter, roughly cut, and dark circles under her eyes stand out on her pale face. But most of all, the way she holds herself, as though she's surrendering after giving everything to her fight.

"Will?" her voice is rough, and barely louder than a whisper. "I can't believe you're here…you…you were dead…I shot you…" She seems lost for words, and tears begin to fill her eyes. Automatically, I walk forward and put my arm around her. I immediately feel guilty for suspecting Tris's indifference to my murder; how could I have thought that she would be so cold hearted? How would I have felt if our roles had been reversed, and I had shot her whilst under the simulation? And now seeing me again, back from the dead…

"How…how are you alive?" Tris asks, her voice still shaking.

"I think Kate's the one to tell you that," I reply, turning to where Tris's aunt is standing by the window. "To be honest, I still don't know the whole story myself."

Kate smiles at me, coming to sit down on the chair beside the bed, then turns to face Tris.

"As you know, Chicago is full of security cameras; some, the Dauntless and Erudite control, but mostly they have been placed there by the Bureau. You've seen how they can watch everything that happens inside the city; even in the places you thought were secret and safe. Well, the Bureau aren't the only ones with access to those cameras – from the fringe, we've managed to intercept the footage from the city. That's how we've been able to keep an eye on what's happening, and try to give help to those that need it.

"As you can imagine, we knew action needed to be taken when we realised Jeanine's plans for creating a Dauntless army, so we assumed the Bureau would take action, perhaps using the memory serum. But they did nothing. We saw Eric meeting with the Erudite to discuss how they would organise implanting the transmitters without detection, but still, nothing happened. It took almost half of your faction being killed, followed by the deaths of many innocent Divergent women and children in the Candor headquarters for the Bureau's decision to intervene. But by this time, we'd already begun our work. Many of the controlled Dauntless had been left wounded in the streets after the transmission ended. Several, such as Will, were too severely injured to return to their faction bases –" Tris winces as she says this, glancing at me. "These were the people we knew we could easily help without attracting attention from the rest of you living in Chicago. It was quite simple really. We have several Bureau vehicles that we repaired, so we could just drive into the city. Not many people know, but there's another entrance into Chicago, behind the factionless sector. We believe that during the riots a few generations ago, some of the factionless managed to break out of the city. They've never been found, though. It's unlikely they managed to make it to another city; there's not much round here except the Bureau and the fringe. The closest city is Milwaukee, and it would take days to get there, even if you knew where you were going." Kate suddenly stops, realising she has gone off topic.

"Anyway, once we had got to the factionless sector, we still needed to plan out where to go from there. Luckily, Will was only a few streets away, just at the edge of the Abnegation sector. We also knew there were several others near us who we could pick up. There were five of us who went into the city; we had the toughest job because it was of the utmost importance that we weren't caught on any of the security cameras, even the Bureau's ones. If they found out what we were doing, they'd get rid of the fringe for good. We were hoping that most of the attention would be focused on the fighting that was going on elsewhere, but we still had to be very careful. We managed to pick up Will and two others, but by then our time was running out and we had to make a break for it out of Chicago. When we got back to the fringe, we each took care of one of the people we had rescued. I was looking after Will, and it was several days before I managed to get him to regain consciousness. There were several times when I was worried he wouldn't make it, his wounds were so deep, but he's strong and pulled through." Kate smiles up at me and squeezes my hand.

"That's about it, really," she says, turning back to Tris. "As soon as Will was able to walk again, he was desperate to get back to the city and help you. I had to convince him that staying here was the safest option for him, seeing as everyone in Chicago thought he was dead. When you and your friends arrived at the Bureau, though, I knew it was time for us to intervene. I've had an access card ever since my sister Natalie worked there." I see Tris's hands clench as she hears her mother's name. Kate notices too, and folds her own hands around Tris's clenched fists. Her voice is softer as she speaks to her niece, and I suddenly feel awkward and out of place, as though I am witnessing a private moment.

"Tris, you know that your mother had to keep her past life secret from everyone," Kate murmurs, "it wasn't that she didn't trust you enough to tell you. But I know how happy it made her to have family like you, after all that we went through as children. That's something I'll always be jealous of, that I never had the shot at happiness that Natalie did."

Tris turns her head towards the wall, biting her lip in an obvious effort to stop herself from crying. Kate puts an arm around her and Tris lets out a sob, burying her head into Kate's shoulder. Seeing their family reunited is making me realise how much I miss having someone to turn to. Unable to contain myself any longer, I stride out of the room, slamming the door behind me.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

Tobias

Darkness has crept into the house, and still Christina has not returned. I toy with the idea of going after her, but I'm still annoyed with her for storming out earlier. I reach into my pocket and once again read over the note that Caleb sent to me, now crumpled and ripped from my near constant grasp.

_Something big has happened that I think you should know about._

What does he mean, I should know about? What is there that's happening that could possibly concern me. For a second a flicker of hope squeezes my heart as I think of Tris, but it is quickly dispelled by the darkness of reason. I know she'll never come back to me, but there are still issues that play on my mind as I remember the days following her death. I never saw the body, but I was told that the effects of the death serum made it almost unrecognisable. I insisted that I wanted to see her one last time, but Christina convinced me that it wouldn't be good to see her like that. I couldn't stand to stay in the Bureau, after all that I knew they had done to us, to Tris. But I found returning home even harder; each place where a memory of her lurked was a stab of pain in my heart.

The door slamming jerks my out of my reverie, and I look up to see Christina standing before me, her hair dripping with the rain which must have started outside. Inexplicably, I am overwhelming relieved to see her, and before she has a chance to open her mouth to speak, I wrap my arms around her in a tight embrace.

"Where have you been?" I whisper into her ear, pressing my face against her cheek.

"I just needed some time to think," she says. "I'm really sorry about what I said earlier, I know what it feels like to lose someone you're close to, and I know that sometimes the only person you feel you can talk to is the one you've just lost." She pulls her head back so that she can look at me.

"Look, I know this is hard for you, but I really think you should meet Caleb tomorrow," she murmurs, placing both of her hands around mine holding the note. "It's tough for him too, so whatever it is must be important."

I know she's telling the truth, even though it's hard to hear. I suppose you need some Dauntless in you to be Candor; it takes bravery to not give in to lying. I press my forehead against hers and look into her dark eyes.

"I know," I say, and before I know what's happening, I'm kissing her.


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Tris

The sounds of Will's heavy footsteps as he marches out of the room jerk me out of Kate's arms. I try to get up, intending to follow him, but Kate restrains me.

"No, Tris," she says quietly, but firmly. "He needs to be alone."

My eyes are still fixed on the door, though I remain seated.

"What's he so upset about?" I ask, turning back to Kate.

"I think he's just a bit homesick," she replies, brushing a lock of hair out of my eyes, just as my mother used to. "I don't think our family reunion has made him feel any better about it either." She sighs, her eyes on the doorway, then stands up.

"Do you feel up to looking round the fringe?"

Though I'm still weak and aching all over, I can't resist the opportunity to be outside again. I practically jump out of bed, before a wave of dizziness sends me falling back down. Kate looks at me anxiously, reaching out a hand to touch my forehead.

"Are you sure you're ready?" she says, as I get up again, this time more slowly. "We can go tomorrow if you'd rather wait."

"No," I insist, already walking towards the smell of fresh air from the open door, "I'm fine."

"Maybe you'd like some different clothes first," Kate suggests, lightly turning my shoulders so that I face the chest of drawers. I look down and realise that I'm still wearing the clothes from the Bureau, now blood-stained and ripped. "I'm sure you're pretty close to my size, pick whatever you like; I'll give you some privacy."

She leaves, closing the door behind her. I open up one of the drawers, and a jumble of colour flashes out at me, all the factions mixed together, and some colours that I've never seen on clothing before; purple, green and pink. Still drawn to my old Dauntless uniform, I find a pair of black jeans and a plain t-shirt. A label on a light blue jumper catches my eye – the name Natalie scrawled in untidy writing. I carefully pull it on, imaging my mother wearing it as a teenager before she chose to live a lie and became Natalie Prior.

Kate is waiting by the front door, the outline of a gun just visible underneath her coat. She notices me looking and smiles.

"I shouldn't need to use it, but things can get out of control in the fringe. When people are constantly fighting for survival, they like to take out their stress on other people," she winces, as if at a bad memory. "Usually nothing serious happens, just a few fights, but occasionally things can escalate and get out of hand. Most people blame the Bureau and the 'genetically pure' for all their struggles, but some just blame each other." The way Kate spits out the words 'genetically pure' makes me think that perhaps she doesn't feel as kindly towards the Bureau as my mother did.

"Um, Kate," I say tentatively, not sure whether it was a good idea to ask. "Did you ever get taken to the Bureau?"

She looks down at me, her expression hard to read.

"Not at first, no. Your mother was picked up by the Bureau just by accident, but once her genes were found to be perfect, there was no question of her returning to the fringe. I had no clue where she had gone, no note from her or anything. I was abandoned with no friends. It was weeks before she persuaded David to come and get me. Of course, they wanted to test me too, but turns out my sister got all the good genes. I was branded as damaged, and therefore useless, so I was shipped back off to the fringe. Natalie wasn't allowed to come and see me, and she wasn't able to sneak out very often. Still, she tried hard to keep in touch, and she helped me and the others when we wanted to save those that needed it in Chicago. After she volunteered to help resolve the situation in the city, she couldn't contact me anymore, but by then we had managed to gain access to the footage from the Bureau's cameras. So that's how I found out when she got married, and that I had a niece and nephew," she smiles at me, but it soon fades. "I've always despised the Bureau for separating me from my sister, and I think that's why I've worked so hard to help those who are below the scientists' notice, just because of their genes."

Hearing first-hand how the Bureau's genetic discrimination has caused such grief, I wonder how I ever believed all their lies. Tobias was right not to trust them, and I shouldn't have assumed he thought that just because they'd humiliated him. I don't know what to say to my aunt, so instead, I just put my arms around her, trying to make up for the time she has missed with her family. I realise how much I miss Tobias, and imagine how awful it would be if our separation was permanent, as for my mother and Kate.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

Christina

I am alone in our apartment. Four left early this morning to visit his mother who is still living in her factionless home, despite her new rise to power. I end up sitting on his bed, breathing in his smell that still clings to the sheets. We didn't talk after the kiss, and I'm not sure that Four wants to. I suppose he feels like he's betraying Tris, even after she's dead. I understand why he sees it like that, but I do think he needs to move on with his life. The time after Will died was probably the worst of my life; I didn't think I'd ever get over it. Sometimes you just need a bit of help, and Uriah was there for me. Our relationship was never romantic – we were both grieving and needed a friend to talk to and laugh with. I guess it was our time in the Bureau that made me drift apart from Tris – the discovery of her mother's journal made her distant from all of us, except perhaps Four. He needs me to stop him wallowing in self-pity all the time, but this feels different from how it was for me with Uriah. I guess I've always found Four attractive, ever since I first joined Dauntless. But I was never jealous of Tris, I had Will, until she shot him, of course. I never could fully forgive her for that, although I know he was just acting Jeanine's puppet at the time. Perhaps it's time for me to let go now that's Tris has gone, as well as Four.

A shout from downstairs drags me from my thoughts, and I quickly run down to see him. I'm not sure how to greet him now – a hug, a kiss, nothing? Four looks as awkward as I feel; he shifts his feet nervously and doesn't quite meet my eyes.

"How's Evelyn?" I ask, opting for polite small talk.

"She's fine, a bit power-crazy, but fine." A ghost of a smile flickers across his face. "She can't decide what to do about Marcus, it's like her little game. She wants to exile him from the city, but I don't think that she should."

"You don't?" I say, surprised. Four has never shown any kind of fondness towards his father, I'm not sure what could have brought on this sudden change of heart.

"I guess I can see his point of view more now," Four fiddles absentmindedly with the hem of his shirt. "Losing Evelyn, even if it was his fault that she went, must have been hard, and I suppose I was a reminder of her…" He pauses. "Just like Caleb is a reminder for me."

I almost roll my eyes in exasperation.

"Don't tell me you're backing out of meeting him later," I fix Four with a hard stare. "You chose to join Dauntless, and you're not even brave enough to go and visit an Erudite?" My voice is scornful, taunting, but it doesn't bring out the reaction I was hoping. Instead of fighting back to my criticism, his shoulders slump in defeat. He stands there, an image of self-pity and helplessness, looking so forlorn that I can't stop myself from embracing him.

"I didn't mean that," I whisper, pressing my face against his chest. "I just-"

"No, you're right," he cuts me off, his voice cracking slightly. "I should be able to face seeing Caleb. I chose Dauntless, now I need to show that it was right for me."

Tentatively, his hand strokes my hair. I close my eyes, feeling the constant pulse of his heart beating against my cheek.

"You'll always be Dauntless, Four," I murmur. "You shouldn't change who you are just because Tris died."

He chokes slightly, as though fighting back a sob. I hug him tighter, then I catch sight of the clock behind him.

"Be brave," I say, "it's time to go and meet Caleb."


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Tris

There are far more people in the fringe than I had realised from my brief glimpse whilst accompanied by Amar and George – the whole town is buzzing as people go about their daily business; repairing their ramshackle houses, scavenging for supplies, meeting friends. I stick close to Kate, and any hostile looks at me are quickly quelled by her protective stare. She seems to be a popular figure amongst the locals; many call out greetings or stop to talk. I am introduced as her niece from Milwaukee – I suspect this is to disguise my connections with the Bureau. All around there are the signs of the oppression these people have suffered, from the tarp and scrap metal constructions that constitute a home here to the abundant graffiti that covers any official posters supporting the divine right of the genetically pure. It's all so similar to the factionless sector back in the city – but here the Bureau has devised its own initiation based on your genetic code.

My daydreaming is interrupted by Kate calling my name.

"Tris? Tris! You okay?"

"Yes, I'm fine," I say quickly. "Just daydreaming."

"This is the one of the few areas in the fringe which weren't completely destroyed," Kate says, gesturing to the row of houses in front of us. They look familiar, and I realise that I passed here on patrol with Amar. "But there's only limited electricity and water supply, so it's not much better than being on the streets." She turns away from the houses, heading back the way we came. As I turn to follow, a movement in the shadows catches my eye. A dark figure was moving towards us down an alley ahead. Instinctively, my hand goes to my waistband where my gun should be, but I only feel my denim jeans. Panicked, I grab Kate's arm to warn her when the figure emerges into the light.

It's Will. He hurries over to us, looking apologetic.

"Sorry I walked out on you earlier," he says as he reaches us. "I guess I'm just missing home a little at the moment." His eyes catch mine, then he looks away, scanning the street around us. "Giving Tris the tour?"

"Just finished," Kate replies. "We're heading back now if you want to come with us."

"Sure," Will says, falling into step beside me as we turn back the way we came.

"How did you end up getting a proper house?" I ask Kate.

"I've only been living there for about a year," she says. "It was a privilege granted to me for helping the community here. Once a previous owner dies, it's decided who deserves to take it over."

"Good job you got it too," says Will, "or you'd never have enough room for both of us!"

"It's going to be a squeeze as it is," Kate says. "Tris needs to have the spare bed in my room, so I'm afraid you'll be on the sofa."

"I don't need –" I begin, but Will cuts me off.

"Don't worry, Tris," he smiles down at me. "There are worst places I could be sleeping." He looks around at the makeshift homes we are passing, where a couple of thin blankets make up a family bedroom.

This poverty makes even my simple Abnegation house seem luxurious. A feel a twinge of homesickness as I think of the city we've left behind. I need to talk to Will, to see if he will come with me. There's no question of me staying here – generous as Kate has been to me, I have to get home, to Tobias. My heart seems to ache in response to my thoughts, and my legs feel strong again – ready to run back to him.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

Tobias

Though it is late, light radiates from the Erudite building as though it is on fire; each window a glimpse into the work of a scientist inside. I remember the last time I was here, saving Caleb from Evelyn's prison. It seems strange that he should have ended up back here.

"You ready?" Christina asks, squeezing my hand.

I open my mouth to reply, but I can't seem to form the right word. Instead, I move towards the glass doors that lead into the building and peer into the dimly lit foyer. It's deserted. I push the door open slowly, trying to make as little noise as possible.

Footsteps sound like bullets in the muffled silence, and I quickly pull Christina behind the empty reception desk.

An anxious-looking man in a white coat runs down the stairs, frantically riffling through an enormous book, muttering nonstop in what sounds to me like a foreign language. Once he has safely disappeared down a corridor to the right, I stand up, pulling Christina with me. I look around the reception, trying to find anything that might help us, but before I see anything…

"Four, over here!" Christina whispers excitedly. She's standing across the room, examining one of the posters on the wall. As I draw nearer, I realise that it's a detailed floor plan of the building.

"Where's his lab?" I ask, scanning the map quickly.

"Up here," she says, pointing to the far left corner on the second floor. "And we're down here," she points to a red dot near the bottom of the map, "so we need to go up these stairs, across there, up those stairs, down the corridor and third on the left." She traces our path with her finger and she speaks.

"And all we have to do is not be seen by anyone," I say. "Sounds like one of Eric's Dauntless initiation games."

"If Eric had planned it, there'd be no map and a minefield instead of a staircase." Christina smiles at me. "Let's go."

We make our way silently up the stairs, the blue-hued electric lights casting our moving bodies as elongated shadows shifting fluidly across the stark white walls. The first floor is silent, though squares of light shine through the lab doors, illuminating our faces as we pass. We come to the second staircase; a narrow, winding spiral climbing steeply upwards. Voices suddenly echo up from below us, followed by the patter of footsteps on the stairs. Christina looks at me, panic-struck. I turn to sprint up the stairs, but it's too late.

"Hey!" calls a man's voice. I freeze, wondering whether to make a run for it, I am almost certainly faster than him, but one shout could alert all the other scientists.

"Four?" A wave of relief washes over me as I recognise Caleb's voice, not the emotion I would have expected in this situation.

"Oh, thank God," Christina says, slumping against the bannister, "it's you."

"You're lucky it is me," Caleb replies reproachfully. "Do you realise what would have happened if someone else found you here?"

"Yeah, yeah, spare us the lecture," I say, his Erudite character already annoying me. "Shouldn't we get going to your lab?"

"This way," he says, casting me a dirty look as he carries on past me up the stairs. We follow him down in dizzying circles upwards, until we emerge on an identical, long corridor. We stop outside the door of lab 34B, on which a small plaque reads _Dr Caleb Prior_.

Caleb types a long code into a keypad set to the side of the door, and it slides smoothly open, revealing a typically minimalist Erudite lab, all the surfaces spotlessly clean. Automatic lights flicker on above us as we enter, the severe blue glare bouncing off the polished walls and floor. Caleb leads us over to his desk, where several computer monitors are winking sleepily at us.

I feel uncomfortable here, the bright lights and steely worktops an all-too-painful reminder of the time I spent as a prisoner in the Erudite headquarters, when Jeanine made me watch Tris writhe in pain so that I would give her information.

Lost in agonising memories, I suddenly realise Caleb is talking. I drag myself back to the present, trying to ignore the feeling of dread that still fills me.

"As you know, all the scientists have access to all the security cameras inside the city, as Dauntless did before," he is saying, tapping away rapidly at the keyboard as he speaks. "But since our visit to the Bureau, I've been curious to see more of what's outside the fence as well, especially after Tris…" He fades off, glances nervously at my stony face, then continues hurriedly. "Anyway, I've been trying for a while to remotely access their computer system in order to see their CCTV footage, and a couple of days ago I finally managed it." He steps back from the screen and beckons us forward. "I managed to get hold of this clip from one of their mobile cameras that was set up in the fringe, and I thought you should see it." His hands are trembling slightly as he clicks the mouse once.

I lean forward and see a derelict row of houses set back from a potholed street, where a few people are walking slowly towards the camera. As they get closer, I see that it's two women, both slight and blonde. They draw closer to the camera, then turn to look at the houses in front of them. A few moments later they move again, back down the way they've come.

A movement at the edge of the screen catches my eye, and as a figure moves into the shot, one of the women turns face on to the camera, reaching for a gun at her waistband in a movement that is painfully familiar.

The picture is small and grainy, but there's no doubt now. I stare at the screen, transfixed by what I'm seeing, unable to believe my eyes.

Tris stares back at me, smiling now as she seemingly recognises the figure. I glance at him, wondering who he could be. As they turn and walk away, his shuffling gait reminds me of a tall boy with shaggy blonde hair from Dauntless initiation – Will.


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

Will

Shadows have crept silently to fill the barren streets by the time we reach Kate's house, staining the greying tarpaulins inky black. Not long after we return, Kate has to leave for a committee meeting, so Tris and I are left alone for the first time since she shot me. We sit side by side on her bed, close but not touching – there seems to be some kind of invisible barrier separating us. Our silence fills the room, the unsaid words hanging tantalisingly in the air between us, daring us to voice those things we are unable to say. Tris twists a strand of hair around her finger nervously, staring at her lap and trying to avoid my gaze. I feel the tension growing until I need to say something to break the impenetrable silence, but then she speaks, her voice far from the strong, brave Tris that I knew during initiation.

"Christina," Tris begins, then pauses, takes a breath, and continues. "Christina, she thought you were dead, and she knew…she knew that I had shot you. I told her when I was given truth serum by Candor, I just couldn't lie to her about it, but I don't think she ever really forgave me." A tear drops onto Tris's lap, but she doesn't move to wipe her eyes, but just carries on, the words flowing from her like an unstoppable wave. "And I couldn't forgive myself either, knowing what I'd done to you, and to her. Just because all I saw you as was Jeanine's puppet, I couldn't see you as still being you on the inside." She suddenly looks up at me, her eyes wide and pleading, begging me to understand. "But I'd just watched them shoot my innocent mother as she tried to save me, I couldn't…I didn't mean…" Tris finally succumbs to tears, sobbing uncontrollably.

Instinctively, I wrap my arms around her, pulling her head onto my chest. I can feel her tears seeping into my shirt, but I don't pull away. I just rock her back and forth and let all the pain flow from her. Of course I forgive her, but can she forgive me? I could so easily have killed her then, without ever knowing my crime. I wish I had been strong enough to defeat the simulation, to stop myself from murdering who knows how many innocent Abnegation. I try to find the words to voice my thoughts, but I've never had the eloquence that Tris possesses.

Her sobs are fading by the time my mind drifts to Christina. I remember the short time we spent together during Dauntless initiation, our first kiss by the railway line. I'd never met anyone like her at Erudite – confident, caring, free. I realise that I've spent too long here in the fringe, hiding from a city that presumed me dead. I need to return home.

Preoccupied by my thoughts, I haven't noticed that darkness has truly fallen now, and all I can see of Tris is a mere silhouette.

"Tris," I mutter, shaking her shoulders gently.

"What is it?" Her voice is hoarse from crying.

"Look, I know you haven't spent much time here with Kate so far, but-" I shift uncomfortably, not sure how to phrase it. "I think it's time for me to go back to Chicago. Christina's there, and Cara and my parents, I can't hide from them any longer."

"Really?" Tris says, her voice stronger. "I didn't want to push you into leaving when you didn't want to, I can see how close you and Kate have become. It's not that I don't appreciate what she's done for me here, but I can't spend much longer here either, I need to see Tobias again, so he can know I'm still alive."

In her eyes, I see the same eagerness to act that I'm feeling, the urge to get moving as soon as possible.

"We'll talk to Kate in the morning," I promise. "But now, we should get some sleep, especially if we're going to be travelling tomorrow."

I leave Tris and walk down the hall to the living room, thinking that dawn couldn't come soon enough.


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Christina

The camera shot never shows his face, but I can see it clearly in my mind's eye – shaggy blond hair falling just in front of pale, green eyes, and a crease between his eyebrows. I feel like the world's spinning, or that the floor has suddenly fallen through. My thoughts are slipping through my brain without a trace, leaving just blank shock and disbelief. Caleb is still talking, but his words sound like another language, they hold no meaning. I look at Four. His face mirrors how stunned I feel inside. He seems to be drawn towards the computer screen, where Caleb has zoomed in on a freeze frame of Tris.

Even the pixelated image shows a startling change in her features – her cheekbones protrude noticeably from hollowed cheeks, dark shadows circle her eyes and her hair falls lank and unkempt across her forehead. The woman beside her looks shockingly familiar, I almost mistake her for Tris's mother. Her arm is settled protectively around Tris's shoulders and she's smiling kindly at Will, who is approaching just out of the shot.

Pressure on my hand alerts me to my surroundings, and I instinctively recoil, before realising it's only Four. He looks straight into my eyes, but there's a far off look that I haven't seen in them before, at least not since the last time he was looking at Tris.

"Christina, we have to find them," he says, his voice low and urgent. Though he's trying to focus on me, his eyes keep flickering to the computer screen, as if he thinks Tris will disappear if he looks away for too long. "Look, I don't know how it's possible for them to be alive, but we've got to get back to the Bureau and find them. I can't stay here, knowing she's out there, alive." His voice cracks on the last words, and yet again I'm seeing the vulnerability inside his tough, Dauntless shell, the Abnegation boy who chose to leave all he knew and loved behind him.

"Of course we need to find them," I say, wrapping my hands around his entwined hands, the knuckles white with anxiety. "How could we not? They've just been brought back from the dead for us...I never thought I'd see either of them again…" Now my voice is breaking, and I fade off into silence, unsure of what to say next.

Caleb suddenly clears his throat pointedly – I jump in shock, having forgotten he was in the room.

"I've been able to trace the location of the camera which filmed this," he says, gesturing towards the screen. "It's on the outskirts of the fringe, about 40 miles from the Bureau." He taps away at the keyboard and the window changes, now showing a map of the city, with the heading 'CHICAGO'. The map zooms out, and I can see a group of buildings huddled together under the caption 'BUREAU OF GENETIC WELFARE'. Caleb pans across so that Chicago vanishes from view, but a network of streets, which I assume is the fringe, appears on the opposite side of the screen. A red pin is glowing at the edge of this complex, and the map zooms in until the streets of the fringe fill the screen.

"This is the road that comes from the Bureau," Caleb indicates the widest street leading into the centre of the fringe, "and this is the one that goes to Milwaukee, the next closest city," he points at a road snaking upwards off the screen. "The camera is just here, off one of the main streets of the fringe." The red pin is centred on a spot not far from the road from the Bureau.

"How long would it take to get there from the Bureau?" Four asks, clearly already planning our journey.

"Well, you'd be unlikely to be able to persuade them to lend you vehicles, so on foot, I'd say a day or two."

"But it might be too late by then!" Four shouts, thumping his fist down on the desk. "What if they're already moving on, to that other city, Milky or whatever it is?"

"Milwaukee," Caleb corrects him, his smug Eruditeness inescapable even though we no longer have factions.

"Look, Four, we haven't really got a choice in this, have we?" I say, sensing his growing frustration. "We've got to get to them somehow, and if we have to walk, we'll walk."

Four looks over at me, and I'm afraid he's going to start yelling, but instead he just exhales slowly, his anger seeming to leave him with his breath.

"You're right," he replies, reaching over to take my hand. "It's just…I couldn't bear it if we never got to them after finding out all this."

"I know," I say, leaning over to rest against him. "I know."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

Tris

The dawn light filters dimly through the makeshift curtains in my room, tinting the walls gold. I glance at my watch, it's 5am. Thought I've only slept for a few hours, I feel wide awake, my body tingling with the anticipation of action. I know it's too early to wake up Kate, but I can't stay still. I pace around the small room, willing the clock's hands to move faster, but the seconds slide by with deliberate sluggishness.

After what feels like hours – but my watch tells me is only 20 minutes – there is a quiet tap at my door. Nervous and excited as I am, even this slight noise makes me jump from where I am perched on my bed.

Will opens the door slightly, then, seeing that I was awake, enters, looking just as hyperactive as I feel.

"Is it too early for Kate to be up?" I ask in a whisper, glancing towards her bedroom which was just visible through my ajar door.

"She should be awake soon, she normally gets up before 6," Will reassures me, placing a large hand over my fingers, which were drumming a staccato beat on my knees.

The remaining minutes drag by, the minute hand seemingly unwillingly to return to the 12. At five minutes to, we hear footfalls from the hall signalling Kate's awakening.

"Let's go," I say, immediately standing up and starting towards the door, but Will throws out an arm to restrain me.

"At least give her a chance to make a cup of coffee," he says, though not unkindly, smiling at my disgruntled expression. "I know we haven't got much time to lose, but it wouldn't be fair on Kate." Thankfully I'm not kept waiting long; soon Kate enters the room cradling a coffee mug between her hands. Her hair is dishevelled and there are dark rings under her eyes, but she's smiling down at us.

"I've come to join the pyjama party," she says, sitting down on the bed beside me. "Although it looks like I'm the only one left in my pyjamas! What's the hurry to get going this morning?"

I avoid her curious gaze, instead looking beseechingly at Will. I may have been the one pushing for this talk but now it comes to it, I don't know what to say.

"Kate, you've been so good to both me and Tris, taking care of us when we needed you most," he begins, moving to stand by the window. "But the fringe isn't our home, even though you've done your best to allow it to be. We need to go back to the city, Chicago. It's where we belong; our families, our friends, they're all there, thinking we're dead. I know that it's not fair on them to prolong our absence, but I also know it's not fair for us to leave you here, after all you've done for us. You could come back to Chicago with us Kate," I glance up at him, surprised. We hadn't discussed this part of our plan. "The city's in a mess, but we could do with more people like you to help sort it out – you know what needs to be done, you've seen everything through the Bureau's cameras. You could do so much good there, and I want you to know that you'd be as welcome there as you've made us here."

Will turns to look at me as he finishes his speech, expecting me to continue. I don't know what to say, but Kate focuses her gaze on me too.

"I think Will said it all," I stammer, knowing I sound like an idiot. "You saved my life, and gave me a family again…of course you'd be welcome to come with us. You're all I have left of my parents, and I don't want to lose you." My voice breaks at the end, and Kate puts her arm around me, pulling me into a tight embrace.

"What else could I do, leave you both to die? I've known you all your life but never been able to tell you, Tris. And Will, you don't realise how much help you've been to our community here in the fringe, and to me. Both of you; these last few weeks have been some of the happiest of my life, despite all I've seen. I'd love to come back to Chicago with you, but I can't abandon my work here. It'll be hard saying goodbye to you, but I've always known that you couldn't stay forever."

She pulls Will into the hug, and we stay there for several minutes, a snapshot of mixed joy and sorrow, to be kept in our memories forever.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Tobias

We don't speak as we make our way back through the darkness to our apartment, the silver haze of dawn almost visible at the distant eastern horizon. The images Caleb showed us are still stuck in my brain, as though they were imprinted on the inside of my eyes. Her last words echo around my brain, "I love you, I love you, I love you", until the sounds lose meaning. It would be like losing her all over again if we never found them. In subconscious response to my thoughts, my strides lengthen, leaving Christina trailing behind as I speed onwards.

As I'm fumbling with the door keys, Christina catches my hand, pulling me round to face her.

"You need to tell Evelyn," she says firmly, her jaw set.

"She doesn't need to know," I say, turning back to the door, "She's got more important things to think about now than what I'm doing."

Christina pushes me arm, forcing me round again – I'd forgotten how strong she was.

"You think she's not going to notice if you just disappear? She's been calling every day for weeks, I wouldn't be surprised if she's tracking where you go, she's worried about you."

"Well she doesn't need to be," I reply angrily, "she made it clear that her priorities are with the new government."

"Tobias, there are people here who care for you too, it's not just Tris!"

"Don't call me Tobias!" I snap, finally managing to unlock the door and wrenching it open. I had kept it a secret so long, burying that part of me deep inside me. The only one I could share that part of my life was Tris, but with Evelyn in power, I'm Tobias Eaton again. Four, the Dauntless instructor persona I had created for myself to hide behind had been thrust aside, I'm the abused young boy again, locked in a cupboard, begging to be let out. Childishly, I shove the door shut behind me, slowing Christina's pursuit. I take the stairs two at a time, then stride into my room, slamming the door shut and locking it.

Seething, I sit down on my bed, but I'm too full of fierce energy, so I pace up and down around the small room, my breaths quick and shallow. Gradually, my breathing slows and I collapse on top of the covers, my anger ebbing away to leave a hollow loneliness. I close my eyes, and see her face in front of me, her hollow cheeks and dark-ringed eyes making me ache with sadness and longing.

Outside my window, dawn's misty touch is creeping through the city, gently clearing the bitter darkness of night. I know I should rest, but sleep evades me as words and images fight noisily for notice inside my brain.

Just before 6 o'clock, there is a light tap at my door, but I ignore it, turning away to face the wall. I hear Christina go down the stairs, and a minute later the front door slams. I wonder where she is going, but my eyelids are finally heavy with sleep, and I let myself drift off into the blissfully dreamless void.


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Christina

I sit at the kitchen table, barely staying awake, but unable to fall asleep, a mug of coffee clutched between my numb hands as though it is my lifeline. The clock on the wall in front of me ticks incessantly, a constant reminder of the precious time that is slipping away.

4 o'clock, 5 o'clock…I can hear Four pacing upstairs, a steady rhythm of floorboards creaking in the silence, but he doesn't come back downstairs, he's still too angry at me. I replay in my mind the look he gave me when I called him Tobias – his eyes empty and dark, as though it brought back memories too painful to bear.

I can't even make it to 6 o'clock before I give in, tripping up the stairs to his room.

He's stopped pacing now; an eerie silence has settled as the first glimmers of dawn sunlight sneak into the house. I know he's awake – I can picture him lying on his bed, staring up at the ceiling, his head full of the same images that have been haunting me ever since we left the Erudite headquarters. I gently knock on the door.

There's no response, not even a movement from behind the door. Suddenly angry, I storm back down the stairs and out the door, slamming it shut behind me.

The cold morning air is sharp in my throat, but I press on through the deserted streets, away from him, towards the golden arc of the rising sun.

Unchecked by my wandering thoughts, my legs carry me through the city, until I find myself at Candor headquarters, my pale, drawn face reflected back at me in the glass doors. I haven't been back here since before Tris died, not even to visit my parents and my sister. Somehow I couldn't face their judgement – I knew they would say all the things I didn't want to hear, even if they were true.

Like my family, most Candors still live here, although Evelyn has officially abolished the faction system. Behind the glass exterior, the building has been completely changed – the black and white Candor scales that once covered the floor have been destroyed, replaced by ugly, off-white plastic. A fresh start, a society without discrimination, supposedly. But it's become a society without community – Evelyn has removed the heart from the city, along with the symbols that we all used to stand for.

Alone in my thoughts, I haven't noticed the swift flight of time; the sun has almost risen and dark silhouettes are visible in the windows above me. I hover in the street, torn between staying and leaving. I don't want to go back and face Tobias, but neither do I want to stay here to face my family.

I turn to go, but I barely take five steps before a familiar voice stops me.

"Chrissie?" It's Rose, my younger sister, looking strange in a mismatching outfit of black, blue and red, and so much older than I remembered her.

"Rose, what are you doing?" I ask, shifting uncomfortably.

"Seeing my big sister, you know it's been over a year since you last visited? Mum and Dad went crazy when they found out you'd left the city, they thought you'd never come back. But even when you did, you never came to see us, even just to tell us that you were ok." The words pour out of her in a rush, and though I know it's all true, I can't help but strike back.

"You think it's been easy for me?" I shout back, making her flinch. "I lost Will, and then Tris, and now Fou-" I stop, realising Rose will have no idea who Four is. I take a deep breath and continue, but my voice shakes slightly. "I didn't want to lose you too, so I thought I could distance myself from you, make it less painful. Faction before blood."

"There are no factions now," Rose says, moving forward to place a hand on my arm. "But we're still family, we still miss you." A tear trembles on her eyelashes. "I was going to transfer, you know. I wanted to join you in Dauntless, I wanted to be brave like you." She looks up at me, and the admiration in her look fills me with guilt.

I haven't been brave, I've been a coward. Brave would have been staying to talk to Four, this was the easy choice. I have to go back, and we need to go and find Will and Tris.


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 15

Will

The sun is hanging lazily above us as we leave the last of the streets of the fringe behind us. Somehow, Kate managed to get us an old Bureau truck which had been abandoned in the fringe, and thanks to my Erudite childhood, I have a thorough theoretical grounding in pretty much everything.

The old truck lacks any decent suspension, so we can feel every bump and pothole in the road. By the time the fringe has disappeared from view behind us, my whole body feels bruised. The tarmac road we're driving along stretches out ahead of us, seemingly never-ending. Beside me, Tris looks pale and tired, but there is a fierce determination in her eyes, which are fixed on the horizon, as though she can already see the city rising out of the mist.

We don't stop until mid-afternoon; there's a tangible urgency between us to return to Chicago as quickly as possible. By dusk, the flickering lights of the Bureau are visible up ahead, tiny pinpricks of brightness shining in the distance. As we draw closer to the buildings, Tris's gaze finally shifts from the road ahead, and she stares down at her knees, knuckles clenched, her face contorted with the pain of unknown memories.

I switch off the truck's headlights and drop my speed as we approach the Bureau, trying to make as little noise as possible. The crunch of gravel under the tyres seems magnified in the night, and every flicker of moment I expect to be armed security guards jumping out at us. After a painfully long half an hour, we finally leave the fluorescent lights behind us and I see Tris relax beside me. In the distance, I can just make out the fence that surrounds the city, silhouetted against the night's sky.

An old abandoned train stands amongst the ruins of several buildings, the ground around them scattered with rubble. Dilapidated billboards still show adverts for drinks and products long forgotten, their bright colours standing out in the gloom. As we follow the railway line further from the Bureau, the shapes of familiar buildings become distinguishable on the horizon; the Hub, the Merciless Mart.

Seeing the city again reminds me of all I left behind in it, and I step on the accelerator, the truck bouncing along the rocky track faster and faster, carrying us back home.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Tris

The city skyline grows larger and larger on the horizon, but as the last rays of sunlight fade from the sky, it is swallowed up by the impenetrable darkness. Will's set look of determination hasn't altered since we passed the Bureau, so I'm surprised when the truck begins to slow, pulling up to a stop near the edge of the Amity fields.

"What's wrong?" I ask, looking over at him.

"Nothing," he quickly reassures me, "I just think we should wait until tomorrow to go into the city; we have no idea where Four and Christina are, and it'll be much easier to find them when it's light. Not to mention the fact that we could both do with some sleep."

I can't disagree with that – even in the dim light radiating from the truck's display, I can see dark shadows beneath Will's eyes, and I know I must look no better.

"We'll go at dawn," I say in agreement, curling up as much as I could in the passenger seat. "Tomorrow's going to be a big day."

I close my eyes and wait for sleep's gentle touch to engulf me from the haze of my exhaustion. But despite my body's fatigue, my mind is racing, thinking how close I am to Tobias. In my head I replay my last moments with him, his familiar, rough voice, his lips pressing softly against mine. My heart aches, craving his touch again, a longing so intense it's almost painful. I wonder if he's thinking of me, although he must still think that I'm dead. Has he moved on? Has he forgotten about me? The thought of that makes my eyes prick with tears. No, Tobias would be there for me, as I would have been for him, he loves me. Again, I recall his final words, "I love you too, I'll see you soon". Comforted by my memory, I shift in the seat to make myself more comfortable. _I love you Tobias_, I think into the darkness, _I'll see you soon_.


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

Tobias

I awake with a start, the memories of last night flashing through my brain in a series of whirling images: Tris's face on a grainy computer screen, that familiar smile lighting her eyes, a strand of blond hair falling gracefully across her cheek. I sit up suddenly, unable to bear being still for any longer. Only then do I notice the angle of the sunlight dancing through my window. I check my clock, it's 5 in the afternoon. I can't believe I've slept through the whole day and wasted so much time. I wrench open my bedroom door and find Christina standing outside, her hand raised as though she was about to knock.

"Hi," she says, offering me the steaming cup of coffee that she held in one hand. "I thought you would've looked better considering how much beauty sleep you've had."

I'm too annoyed at myself to do more than grimace at her.

"We need to get going," I say, the first searing sip of coffee clearing the last traces of sleep from my brain. "We need to find Tris." I hurry down the stairs, already thinking about whether I could persuade my mother to lend me a truck.

"Four," Christina follows me downstairs and places a hand on my shoulder to stop me. I shake her off. "Four, listen. We can't do this alone, we need more information. We have no idea how to get to the Fringe!"

"We'll sort that out once we get moving, but we can't just sit around here wasting time. What if something happens to them?" My throat tightens involuntarily as I think about that, the possibility that I might never see her again. I shake my head, as if that might make the images go away.

"Four," Christina says again, but her voice is different, softer, it catches me off guard. She takes a breath and cautiously steps closer to me, her dark brown eyes staring straight into mine. "You know I want to go as much as you do, I know how you feel, seeing her when you thought she was dead…it's the same for me with Will. I never thought-" Her voice cracks slightly and her gaze drops. "I never thought I'd see him again, and now knowing that he's out there, alive…" She trails off, but then takes a deep breath as if to steady herself. "We've got to think this through; we can't afford to mess this up."

I know she's got a point, but I still don't want to delay our departure, not knowing that every second is a second longer before I can see Tris again.

"We don't have time for that kind of thing," I'm almost shouting now, my frustration building as I begin to pace around the small kitchen. "We have to go now, before it's too late."

"It's too dangerous," Christina says, her voice as loud as mine. "Is it really worth risking our lives when they might not even be there anymore?"

I stop and turn to look at her.

"I'd risk my life any day if it meant I could be with Tris. I guess Will just doesn't mean as much to you as she does to me."

I can see tears spring to Christina's eyes, but her mouth is set and when she speaks, her voice is steady.

"How dare you try and tell me about my feelings, Four. How can you assume Will isn't important to me just because I'm thinking rationally about this?" She steps closer to me and fixes me with a piercing stare. "And you proved that Tris didn't mean that much to you when you kissed me yesterday."

I flinch from her words as if they were daggers, trying not to hear the truth in them.

"Don't say that," I spit at her. "That kiss didn't mean anything." I try to turn away but Christina catches my shoulder and pulls me back round to face her.

"Didn't mean anything?" she shouts, her eyes blazing with anger. "Didn't mean anything? I know you can feel that there's something between us Four, don't try and deny it. It may not be the same thing that you had with Tris, but I'm not the same as Tris."

I close my eyes, fighting to organise my thoughts. I don't want to believe what she's saying, but I can't deny it either. Tris's face flashes behind my closed eyelids – her bright blue eyes, her long, thin nose, her easy smile. Then I open my eyes and see Christina looking at me, strong, honest Christina. And suddenly all I can think about is her: her joking insults, her mocking smile, her lips on mine. And before I know what I'm doing, I'm kissing her again, one hand laced in her hair, the other sliding down her back, pulling her body closer to mine.

Tentatively, her lips begin to respond to mine, moving slowly at first, then stronger, her breathing becoming faster, her arms moving around my neck. My heart is racing and I can't think, I can't stop, I don't want to stop.


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

Will

The sun is a mere glimmer in the eastern sky when I open my eyes, my muscles sore from sleeping cramped in the driver's seat. I look across at Tris. She's still asleep, a lock of loose hair falling over her cheek as her head lolls forward. She looks more peaceful than I've seen her for days, although a strain of worry still puckers her forehead. I let her rest for a few minutes more, but when the first rays of sunlight begin to dapple the truck in gold, I lean over and gently shake her shoulder to wake her. Tris jerks away from my touch, her eyes flying open, frantically looking around.

"It's ok," I reassure her, placing my hand on hers. "Just me."

"Oh Will," Tris says, her tense stance relaxing as she squeezes my hand. "I'm sorry, I was just dreaming, well, more of a nightmare really…" Her voice tails off, but I don't enquire further. I can empathise, ever since I left Chicago I've been haunted by nightmares, reliving the horrors that I carried out whilst under Jeanine's control. I force these images from my mind, trying to focus myself on the day ahead.

"So, are you ready?" Tris's eyes, no longer heavy with sleep, are wide and alert. She's pulled her hair back off her face in a short ponytail, and her jaw is set in determination.

"I was born ready," I joke, earning a weak smile from Tris.

The last rosy streaks of sunrise are fading as the ancient engine sputters to life, groaning as if in annoyance about the early hour. I drive slowly now, wary of our proximity to civilisation. Ahead of us, through the fields, the familiar buildings grow ever larger, the fence that surrounds them looming above us. We're approaching the Amity sector, several of the large red trucks that they use to transport food are visible through the barbed wire that bars our way. But I know we won't be able to break in through the main Amity gates.

Tris looks questioningly at me as I bear left along the fence's perimeter.

"Will, where-"

"You didn't think we'd be able to get in through the front door did you?" I say, smiling at her. "Don't you remember what Kate told you? There's another entrance, by the factionless sector. That's how they got me out before, and that's how we're going to get in now."

"Well I'm glad you have a plan," says Tris, looking relieved. "I thought we were just going to have to wing it."

I turn to her, looking mock-scandalised. "You're suggesting 'winging it' to an ex-Erudite?!"

Tris laughs; it's the first time I've heard her laugh since we were in Dauntless initiation together. It somehow makes me feel happier too; lighter, less worried.

"I should've known that old habits die hard," she teases.

It doesn't take us long to reach the factionless sector. Our city seemed huge when we were living in it, before we knew how much there was outside of it. Now I've realised how small and insignificant it is in comparison to the world, a tiny dot on a map. It fascinated me to find out about everything else that was out there; I would ask Kate about every tiny detail, we'd sit talking for hours. Part of me yearns to see the rest of the world, visit all the new places I've heard about, meet new people. But I can't forget my life in Chicago, my family, my friends, Christina…

"Will, I think we're here." Tris's voice, though quiet, jerks me out of my reverie. I follow her gaze to a roughly cut hole in the fence, the discarded wire rusted and twisted beside it. I cut off the engine, and the silence that follows is almost deafening.

"Are you ready?" I ask softly.

"I have to be," Tris replies, not looking at me, her eyes fixed on the buildings visible beyond the gap. "We don't have a choice."


End file.
